Light and Darkness
by xxDeathGoddessxx
Summary: Rukia Kuchiki stumbles into a dark forest late one night and meets two brothers, one, bent on consuming her soul. The other, bent on saving it. (Rewritten second chapter)
1. Chapter 1

**This is my first ever Bleach fic (I'm stepping out of the realm of Adventure Time). So what I think is awesomesauce, may actually suck. Let me know? This is AU. I apologize for OOC-ness. **

Rukia Kuchiki was fully aware that what she was doing was against the rules. If not sitting straight was against the rules in her new home, then wandering the grounds of the vast estate somewhere around midnight had to be. But after three weeks of being cooped up in her wing (yes, _wing_) of the ridiculously large house she now lived in, learning about etiquette and what her duties were as the next head of the Kuchiki clan, she felt that if she didn't breath fresh air soon, she would stop breathing altogether.

After sixteen years of growing up on her own in a dingy, poor farming village called Rukongai, Rukia was suddenly greeted by great white horses rode by none other than Byakuya Kuchiki, most wealthy and powerful man in, well at least all of the nearby land. And, as she would find out, her late sister's husband. He had set out to finish his wife's quest to find the baby sister she had abandoned with seamstresses so many years ago. And finally, he had.

She hated it. Her life in Rukongai hadn't been easy by any means. But it was _hers._ She could do as she pleased. She made her own decisions. No aspects about her were being controlled by fussy nobleman and a lady in waiting named Momo (who admittedly she had grown a bit fond of, but only because she let Rukia slouch and relax when no one was looking).

So she took to wandering the grounds at night.

The guardsmen were almost too easy to evade. Her small, lithe frame easily slunk around and disappeared into the shadows when need be. Rukia had no problem leaving the grounds behind altogether, and entering the nearby woods.

She'd been warned numerous times about those woods. They were bad news, the creatures who called it home were worse news.

Was she scared? No. The folks she used to live with in Rukongai were superstitious. She didn't believe in the dark magical creatures that supposedly lived in the woods.

But were the black, knarled, twisted trees and the chilling, howling wind encouraging? Well, not exactly.

Was any of that going to stop her from continuing her midnight stroll? Not in the least. She didn't understand why she suddenly wanted to go into the woods. She'd just started walking that direction, and didn't stop, following an impulse.

She stumbled blindly for a while, before her eyes made up for the decreased moonlight caused by the canopy of leaves overhead. The landscape was oddly black and white, and Rukia matched it, seeming to fit right in with her white skin and black hair. Her violent eyes watched carefully for roots, making sure she wouldn't trip. Wolves howled in the distance, but she wasn't afraid. She'd killed larger beasts that had attacked Rukongai.

The wind continued howling, and suddenly goosebumps raised on the back of her neck and arms. A chill ran down her spine. She whirled, brandishing a small knife that had served her well in the past years (somehow she'd managed to sneak it past the guards during her initial arrival).

No one was there. She decided it would be wise to head back. She began walking back toward the Kuchiki estate, when she heard a low chuckle.

"Who's there?" she demanded, in a way similar to the tone she used when bargaining.

The chuckle came again, followed by an almost... warped sounding voice, "You think getting away would be that easy? You stepped into my woods, little girl. You know what that means? It means I'm going to eat your soul."

The voice was a taunting one, like he was enjoying her fear. Though she knew her fear wasn't obvious. She hadn't picked up much in her etiquette classes, but the cold, indifferent Kuchiki mask fit her like a glove.

"What makes you think I'll give it to you?" she asked in a bored voice, tightening her grip on the knife. She still couldn't see anyone.

The voice pierced her ears again, "What makes you think you have a choice."

She was suddenly seized by a paralyzing cold. Literally. She was unable to move. She was barely able to think or breathe. Her mind screamed, "RUN!" Getting her limbs to cooperate? Not happening.

Finally, she saw the source of the voice. He seemingly stepped out of the shadows. His skin was white as bone, as was his spiky, unruly hair. His eyes were gold, and his lips were curled in a predatory smile. He walked toward her slowly, and tilted her chin up with one finger.

"Hmm... you're small. But I so rarely get to taste human souls. Especially ones this exquisite. You'll do..." He continued with this outward debate on whether her soul was worthy of being consumed by him. Giving Rukia ample time to wonder what the older residents of Rukongai would say to this (besides "I told you so"). Then, they probably wouldn't know. She doubted anyone would find her. She had no idea how far she had gone into the woods. But she was definitely regretting it. Those gold eyes seemed to be freezing her blood, her limbs, but not her brain. Could he really eat her soul? Maybe he was just some deranged lunatic and she was just panicking?

No such luck.

His gold eyes began to glow, and Rukia felt her panic, fear, and the cold ebb away. Unfortunately, along with it went her strength and consciousness. Is this what dying was? What about her soul? If she had a soul, did that mean that there was some kind of afterlife? She guessed it didn't matter, if it was about to be eaten. Her soul wouldn't be going to any kind of afterlife aside from this albino man's stomach. Black spots danced before her vision. But before she could pass out, she thought she saw something strange. Something out of place in this black and white forest. Or in any forest.

A rush of warmth. And a shock of orange hair.

**So that was my first chapter. What do you think?**


	2. Chapter 2

**Thanks for all the lovely reviews. Enjoy (the rewritten) chapter two. Hopefully it's a little less exposition-y toward the end.**

Rukia awoke to darkness and warmth. Her eyelids fluttered, gradually adjusting to the low light given off by a candle that sat on a small table.

She was definitely not in the Kuchiki estate.

She found she was in a cabin of sorts. The walls and ceiling of the structure that surrounded her were made of the same blackened wood that made up the surrounding forest. There was only one room, she lay on a straw mattress in the corner furthest from the door, and was enveloped in many blankets. There were two windows, one near the door, the other just past the foot of the mattress.

She liked it. It reminded her of her home in Rukongai. Simple, no more than necessary. Not the excessive grandeur of the estate. A cozy loneliness.

She sat up, and was hit by a wave of dizziness. She brought a hand to her temple and rubbed slightly, attempting to ease the new, throbbing pain. She groaned quietly. Every time she tried to make sense of her surroundings and situation, the throbbing intensified. Her entire body felt light and weak. She desperately wanted to slip again into unconsciousness. But she also had no idea if she was in any danger. She faintly remembers an albino man appearing before she blacked out. He said something... something about... eating her soul? That was insane.

So where was she? What had happened? Something to do with orange? She couldn't make sense of her thoughts, and the headache didn't exactly make her want to.

The door opened quietly, and Rukia tensed, bracing herself to flee, even though it was likely she wouldn't make it very far in her current condition. A man entered the cabin, and two things registered with her immediately that would've floored her had she not already been laying down.

The man looked exactly like the albino man she had run into before her blackout, but instead of being monochrome, he looked much more like a normal man. His skin much more tan, his eyes a warmer shade of brown. He seemed very tall, and he was sure he would tower over her should she stand next to him.

And he had spiky orange hair.

"Oi, midget," he said, "You're finally awake. I was almost convinced you were asleep for good."

Despite her headache, and despite everything she'd learned at the Kuchiki estate, her anger flared.

"What did you call me, _mongrel_? I'll have you know that I'm at a perfectly acceptable height. You simply happen to be abnormally tall," she declared in a haughty voice.

He scoffed, "Is this your idea of being grateful? You should be a little nicer, considering I did save you and all. Or would you like me to hand deliver you to Hichigo so he can finish dining on your soul?"

She was taken aback. "That wasn't a dream then?" she asked. "There was a man trying to consume my soul."

"Yeah," he said, "Hichigo. He's less of a man, more of a demon. He almost succeeded. He took part of your soul, but not all. You're still human I suppose. I'm not sure what this means for you. I know right now you probably feel terrible. Real bad headache right?" he didn't wait for an answer before he continued, "It'll pass."

"And you saved me?" it wasn't much of a question.

"That's right."

"Who are you?"

"Ichigo. And you are? Unless you want me to keep calling you midget," he smirked at her. But it wasn't predatory, like the smirks men in Rukongai usually bore before they learned she wasn't to be trifled with. It was almost friendly

"Rukia." She purposefully didn't use her new, full name. She didn't feel it was hers, and the more she talked, the worse the dizziness got.

"Hmm. Well _Rukia,_ I take it you've got questions?"

She nodded.

"Well," he said, "They're going to have to wait. You need more sleep, and we both need food. Next time you wake up, I'll tell you everything you want to know."

She opened her mouth to protest, then, hindered by a new, intense wave of pain, decided that a little more sleep couldn't hurt. She figured she wasn't in too much danger, if this Ichigo was telling the truth. And if he was lying, she got the sense that there wasn't a whole lot she could do to stop him from hurting her. So she lay back down, and let warmth and sleep overtake her.

0o0o0

The next time Rukia woke, she had been aroused by the smell of stew. She couldn't be sure, but she thought it might be rabbit. Her stomach growled audibly, and she salivated at the smell. How long had it been since she last ate? How long had she been gone? Byakuya had to have sent out a search party by now. Would they ever find her?

With her wakefulness returned her memories prior to blacking out. A predatory smile, a warped voice.

Ichigo was placing a wooden bowl filled with stew broth next to her bed.

Her voice was raspier than before, but her question still came out, "Who are you?"

He looked at her, seemingly mildly surprised that she was awake again, and said, "You asked me that already. And I told you. Ichigo. Anyway, you need to eat." He handed her the bowl and said, "Drink."

It was getting harder to talk, but she still said, "If I drink, will you actually answer my questions, instead of dodging them?"

He nodded.

She raised the bowl to her lips. It was hot, and scorched her tongue. But it was good and cleared her throat. She had been right, it was rabbit stew. Before she knew it, she had downed half the bowl.

"Alright," she said, "again, who are you?"

"And again," he said, a hint of a smirk tugging at the corner of his mouth, "I already told you."

"That isn't what I meant," she said, "I mean, _what _are you. If you fought off that albino guy-," he cut her off, "Hichigo. He's called Hichigo."

"Alright then," she resumed, "Hichigo had me paralyzed just by looking at me. What are you, what is _he_?"

He looked at me, his gaze steady, and said, "Hichigo is a demon. He feeds off of living souls. There are others like him, but they don't live in this forest. They primarily live in Hueco Mundo, land of the demons. He escaped centuries ago."

She opened her mouth to ask another question, but Ichigo cut her off, "Nope, keep drinking. Your voice is getting raspy again."

She obeyed until the bowl contained about a fourth of its original content. Then she asked, "So how do you know all of this?"

"I've lived in this forest for a while."

She snorted, feeling a bit of her old strength returning, "Yeah, because that's not vague. So what are you?"

He sighed, "You aren't going to let that question go, are you?"

"No."

"Fine," he took a deep breath, "I'm a demon too. I followed Hichigo out of Hueco Mundo."

"So you're a demon too?!" she exclaimed, her eyes widening, "So why haven't you killed me?!"

"What happened to eating in between questions?" He asked. Rukia rolled her eyes and finished the last of the bowl, while Ichigo began to explain... Somewhat.

"Demons aren't necessarily evil. They're like humans, only with advanced speed and strength, can work some forms of magic, remain immortal if not killed, and have a slightly different diet. Human food will sustain us, just not the way a soul would. But they usually pick one end of the good/evil spectrum and stick with it. Got it?"

Rukia nodded, "Got it."

"Good..." He trailed off, taking the bowl from her. He reached over and wiped away a bit of stew that had dripped down to her chin without her noticing. Rukia blushed at the warmth of his fingers.

"Next lesson," he said. "It's rare that demons have children. It's even rarer that they have more than one. But it does happen. That's where I come in. Hichigo is my brother..." he stayed silent for a moment, waiting for Rukia to ask another question. When she didn't, and only fidgeted slightly under his burning stare, he resumed.

"Usually, demon siblings are exactly alike but... Not always. Hichigo did a lot of things in Hueco Mundo that, well, I didn't agree with. I didn't like to hurt people, I prefer protecting them. I couldn't protect everyone though..." he trailed off again, seemingly lost in his own thought. Surprising herself, Rukia took his hand. Clarity washed into his eyes.

"Anyway," he said, "when he came to this world, I followed. I try to keep him from hurting people as best I can. I've confined him to this forest, but people do wander in here from time to time. But you're a rare case. I usually show up early, or too late. But with you, I found him right before it was too late. But now, we need to find him soon, or the results will be catastrophic."

"What do you mean by that?" Rukia asked.

"I mean that Hichigo ate part of your soul already. That means two things: The only way to get it back is to kill him, and soon, or else you yourself will become a demon. And when demons are- for lack of a better term- bitten rather than born, they're wild, unpredictable, and dangerous. You have a few months at best. But it also means something else:"

"Hichigo will stop at nothing to finish the job, and finish consuming your soul."

**What do you think?**


	3. Chapter 3

**Yes. I know. I have no update schedule. Enjoy chapter 3.**

"So what are we going to do?" Rukia asked, alarmed.

"You," Ichigo said, "are going to stay here and rest."

For a second, Rukia thought he was kidding. When his serious expression didn't waver, she yelled, "Are you kidding me?! Expect me to sit around and wait for a demon to come and do away with me?! Have you completely lost it?! I'm fine! I don't need to rest anymore." She stood up, and immediately sat back down, her palm rubbing her temple.

"You were saying?" Ichigo said, eyebrow raised.

She glared at him, trying to ignore the black spots that danced before her eyes. "Oh wipe that smug look off your face. You almost seem like you're happy that I'm stuck here defenseless."

"Defenseless?" he scoffed. "Are you forgetting that I saved you?"

"You did say he'd be more ruthless now."

"That doesn't mean I can't protect you."

"I don't want you to protect me, I want to protect myself!" Rukia yelled defiantly. Ichigo was effectively silenced. He looked at her, an eyebrow raised, as if saying: _Explain please._

"I don't want to have to sit here and wait like some damsel in distress. I want to be able to defeat him on my own," she said quietly, and in a much more reasonable tone. He nodded, he understood.

"That's good," Ichigo said, "Because you're going to have to kill him."

"You already said that," Rukia said questioningly, "We're going to have to kill him."

"No, not we, _you._ The only way to get your soul back is to kill him yourself."

"And it didn't occur to you to maybe tell me this before?!" Rukia said, her voice rising again. She felt the pounding- which she had all but forgotten about- resume, worse than ever. But she ignored it.

"I... I figured I'd wait until the headache got a bit more bearable," he said sheepishly, scratching the back of his neck.

She groaned and flopped back down on the bed. "What am I going to do?" she cried.

"You're going to rest," Ichigo said, "And when you start to feel stronger, I'm going to teach you how to kill a demon."

0o0o0

It took two days for Rukia to be able to get out of bed and walk around. It took another day for her to be able to do so without feeling a rush of dizziness and fatigue. Ichigo was good to her, feeding her rabbit stew and making sure she was comfortable. She couldn't help but feel protected, as much as she didn't want to admit it. And each time he looked at her, she _swore_ his eyes were boring into her soul.

Oh right. _Demon._

She knew enough from listening to the more superstitious folk in Rukongai that demons were supposedly seductive creatures. The more sadistic ones would lure people in, make them comfortable, then pounce. Would Ichigo do that to her? She glanced at him, and he met her eyes. She saw no malice, detected no cruelty. But maybe that was a part of the act.

_Stop it, _she scolded herself. _If he wanted to eat your soul, he's had a million opportunities. He's not going to turn on you. Not today._

_But what if he wants to wait until you have all your soul back? _said a little voice inside her head.

_Shut up, _she told it. No use having doubts. If she ran, she wouldn't make it far. And besides, either way she needed her soul back, and today was the day she was going to learn how to get it.

Ichigo crossed over to the bed, and gave her a hand to help her get up. She, finally, felt fine. No fatigue, no dizziness, and _yes,_ no more headache.

He had made a circle of salt in the center of the cabin. Within the circle lay bowls of various substances. She recognized herbs, water, and what looked like blood. He led her inside of it, and motioned for her to sit down. She did so, and asked, "What's the salt for?"

"Salt, holy water, and a couple of herbs," he corrected. "There's one around the house already, but it's to ensure not only that Hichigo can't get in, but that he can't hear us either. Sometimes he'll try and merge with my mind, so he can overhear our conversation. In this circle, he won't be able to do so."

She nodded and asked, "And the bowls are for...?"

He smirked, "We'll be multitasking today. While I give you your first lesson, I'll be drawing some protective runes on you. Should make your skin harder to pierce, and it should slow down the rate of your humanity loss. Give me your right arm."

She held it out for him, and he dipped a finger in the water. As he traced a symbol on her arm, he began to speak...

"So, I take it you've noticed that Hichigo has hypnotic powers?" he asked teasingly.

She shot him a glare, and said, "Yeah. I noticed."

"They won't affect you if you don't look him directly in the eyes. He injects you with paralyzing fear and cold. Some of these runes should reduce that ability, but they don't make you fear-proof. So if you make the mistake of looking in his eyes, don't keep his gaze, okay?"

"Okay."

He continued drawing strange symbols on her arm. When he reached over and switched to the other, he dipped his finger in the blood. She didn't want to know where he'd gotten it, and seriously hoped it just came from the rabbit she'd been eating. At one point, he traced over the blood or water in herbs and salt. He reached for her forehead, made some kind of mark there, then down to her throat, doing the same. He then sat down, crossing his legs, signaling that he was done.

"Good. So, to kill a demon, you have to decapitate him first, then burn him, then soak the ashes in holy water."

"Why does he have to be decapitated?" Rukia asked.

"Makes the burning part a lot easier, since he can't move."

She snorted, "The decapitation's going to be the hardest part right?"

"That's right," he said. "To cut the head and limbs off of a demon, you have to think like a demon."

"Well that's not the most cliché thing I've ever heard," she said sarcastically.

He rolled his eyes. "I'm serious. Demons, when not just exerting raw power- which you don't have- resort to trickery. You're going to have to do the same. It won't be as simple as just charging in with a sword and lopping his head off."

"So what kind of trickery will I be using?"

"... I don't know. I can't give you much of a game plan. He's pretty unpredictable."

"Helpful."

"But... I can teach you how to fight."


	4. Chapter 4

**To those who have reviewed this story: You guys are awesome. If I could send you all cake, I would. Enjoy chapter 4.**

"Again!" Ichigo barked.

He swung his sword at Rukia again for the umpteenth time, and she blocked, twisted, and thrust her arm down. Ichigo's sword clattered to the ground. He nodded at her curtly, approvingly. They'd been at it for hours, stuck on one disarm. It had taken her time, but she did manage to get it under Ichigo's instruction. He paid attention to the most minute details, and made sure everything was perfect. Every angle, placement of all her limbs, footwork, even how and when she breathed. She likely would have thrown her arms up in frustration a long time ago, had it not been working.

In fact, the disarm was merely a backup plan, in case Hichigo saw her coming. Hopefully, he wouldn't. Ichigo's idea was to stay in the shadows. Some of the runes he'd draw on her would obscure what he called her "Spiritual Pressure", something both he and Hichigo could sense, especially now that she was becoming a demon. Even now, she was starting to feel a faint sort of aura emanating off of Ichigo.

Also, becoming a demon was definitely helping her physically. Now that the sickness had faded, her senses were sharper. She moved faster. She possessed a strength that a girl of her stature should not have.

It seemed to frustrate Ichigo. He said it was because that meant the process was moving a bit more quickly than he anticipated, though not so quickly that it should hinder them or be more worrisome. She thought it was because that, coupled with his teaching, made her capable of defeating him in their brief sparring matches (at least, after he had grown tired).

"Good," he told her. "You might actually stand a chance." He smiled warmly at her. She just raised an eyebrow.

"That's real encouraging," she said sarcastically. The smile faded, and he stared at her intensely.

"Don't ever forget who you're up against," he told her. "Hichigo is a _demon._ I can't even begin to tell you how that alone should paralyze you with fear. His spiritual pressure alone has already paralyzed you with fear."

He didn't have to remind her. Just remembering those gold eyes made her want to curl up in a ball in a tiny dark corner. She'd spent time thinking about it, and she realized those eyes reflected madness. A twisted, sadistic kind of madness that could never exist to such a degree in a human. Only in a demon. But still...

"You're a demon," she said to Ichigo. "And you aren't so bad."

"I'm different," he told her.

"Why?"

"Because, Hichigo is unable to love, like most of the evil demons. The better- note I said 'better' and not 'good'- ones do."

"And you're one of the good ones." It wasn't a question. She knew he was. He'd taken care of her as best he could these past few days. She tried to convince herself that it was just that she'd be dangerous if she didn't get her soul back. But... he could've just let Hichigo kill her. He knew he was supposedly good, and letting an innocent person die wasn't really considered "good". But still, the words "good demon" still did not process in her head. So often, she forgot Ichigo was a demon. Unfortunately, that meant she would focus on how good looking he was, and she'd have to remind herself of the seductive powers she'd heard demons possess.

It was a vicious, maddening cycle.

She also forced herself to ignore the fact that he'd said he could love. Rukia had been abandoned as a child. And though she adored the seamstresses that had taken her in, she had trouble believing in love. Byakuya had taken her in, supposedly out of love for her sister, but maybe it was out of guilt. Nonetheless, Rukia didn't know if she believed in love, but she knew not to rely on it. It may have taken her away from Rukongai, but it was seventeen years late.

"Why are you two so polar?" Rukia asked him. "You said demons siblings are supposed to be similar."

He raised an eyebrow, "I take it this means you're calling a break then?"

"If it means you'll tell me."

"Fine."

He crossed over to the bed, and motioned for her to sit down next to him. She did, completely ignoring the lessons she'd received on how it was improper to do such a thing with a man, to really do anything with a man unless she was married to him.

Her few friends in Rukongai would've laughed at that, and asked, "Well where do you sleep when there's a leak over your bed? Why do you think you make friends with others in the first place? Survival."

"We didn't start out so different," he told her, while getting up to skin a rabbit he had recently killed. Apparently, he'd be multitasking. "Hichigo was definitely more ambitious than I was. There wasn't much trouble to be caused in Hueco Mundo, simply because there was _always _trouble. Demons killed each other left and right, and the good ones usually stayed away. At first, we thought he was one of the better ones, and that we would both be like our mother, and nothing like our father, who was on the more evil side, and had left early on." He paused to discard the rabbit skin. Rukia waited silently for him to resume.

"Then our mother died when we were young. Killed by another demon, as is often the case. We were unable to find our father. And that was when the differences became apparent. I became very sad, and Hichigo became angry. His anger turned to madness, and he left to go to the mortal world. I followed, afraid that he would cause trouble."

"So did he?" Rukia asked. "Cause trouble I mean."

Ichigo came back to sit beside her. "Not at first. He just lay low, and soon I forgot why I'd come there. I traveled, eventually coming here. And in a nearby village, I met a girl. Senna. I loved her dearly, but when she found out I was a demon, she begged for me to make her one too. I refused, so she left."

Rukia noticed he was clenching his fists. She laid her hand over his, trying to comfort him. He relaxed slightly, and continued. "She came back a month later. She stood at my doorstep, saying she'd be like me soon. And standing right behind her was Hichigo, with that smirk on his face. I didn't know what to do for her, so I cared for her. She told me she'd initially been sick. But I watched her grow stronger. But once she lost all of her humanity, she became a monster. A madwoman. She burned down her home village, then attacked me, screaming about how I'd never loved her. I had to kill her. If I hadn't... she would've..."

He trailed off, and Rukia realized he was crying. A small part of her brain noticed that his tears were red, like blood. But mostly she was panicking. Unable to think of anything else to do, she grabbed his face and kissed him, effectively distracting him.

As he stared at her wide-eyed, she told him, "Stop crying."

He nodded at her.

"That didn't happen," she said.

He nodded again. And she pulled him into an awkward sort of hug until his sobs quieted, and her shirt was soaked with red.

**Reviews feed my soul.**


	5. Chapter 5

Here Rukia was, yet again, staring at the gold eyes of the demon trying to steal her soul. He'd yet to notice her, so she watched his eyes flick across the surrounding woods hungrily. She could see Hichigo knew _something _was there. Ichigo's runes had worked to skew her Spiritual Pressure, diminishing it considerably, masking that it was _hers,_ and making it so that he couldn't zero in on it, and that it seemed to come from all directions. According to Ichigo, this was the optimal result. Unfortunately, he couldn't completely mask her Spritiual Pressure, as it had grown too strong.

_"If you were a human," he had told her, "I could've masked it easily. But yours has grown quite strong. I would imagine at this point even a human would be able to sense it, the same way you sensed impeding danger when you met Hichigo."_

The other thing he'd told her had considerably worried her.

_"I wish I could train you more, but we're running out of time."_

She knew he was right. Her morals, the ones she'd stuck to considerably, seemed to be fading. And her physical appearance seemed to be altering. Like it was more defined. She became paler (she hadn't known that was possible), her gaze became more intense, the contours of her body more defined, her movements more fluid. It was noticeable in a barely-there sort of way.

So this was the best time to face Hichigo.

Perched high in a tree, trying to ignore the chill, Rukia found herself missing the coziness of Ichigo's home. She had felt safe there. Much safer than now, obviously. Kissing him had not been discussed. She'd like to blame it on her demonizing, that it was making her impulsive. Though she wouldn't like to admit it, another thing she could blame it on would be the possibility of him possessing seductive powers. But really, she just didn't like seeing him upset, and her head was still reeling from the story and what she knew she'd have to face. So she panicked.

She wondered why he told her so much so early. Maybe he wanted her trust. Maybe he'd just had no one to talk to. Maybe he knew she wouldn't let it go. But every time she asked, his answers were vague.

Maybe he was just an idiot.

Despite everything he'd helped her with, she couldn't help but pick that up. She now had an idea behind his motives, as to why he saved her, assuming he hadn't been lying. Maybe it had been a trap, to lull her into trusting him, so he could turn the tables on her. Any moment, he could show up and point her out to Hichigo, and she wouldn't be frightened by his presence. Well, no more than usual anyway.

She tried very hard not to dwell on that. It was trust him and possibly die, or not trust him and end up definitely dead or in a fate far worse.

_"Everything will be amplified," Ichigo told her. "Everything you do, the way you look, and everything you feel, it's all stronger. It's a blessing and a curse. You heal faster but the pain is worse. Those who aren't born with it tend to go mad, and they have to be eradicated."_

So, yeah. Everything rode on this.

Hichigo's warped voice reached her ears, "Come on out, I know you're there somewhere. You can't hide forever, Rukia. Ichigo's little parlor tricks won't keep you safe for long."

Damn, he knew it was her. How could he possibly know it was her. Wait, duh, who else would it be? Who else would skew their spiritual pressure?

"_He's already stolen part of your soul Rukia," Ichigo had explained. "He has some of your memories. He knows who you are. He may try and use it to his advantage."_

Rukia remained in the shadows, high in her perch above him in one of the many blackened trees. She watched him carefully, terrified he would look up, even though she knew she was well enough concealed that he wouldn't be able to see her. At least, not at first glance.

"So you won't come out for me, will you little girl? What about your brother? Have you stopped and wondered what he's been up to while you were away? You've been gone over a month."

Just how much did he know? Rukia gripped her sword tighter. She'd picked it from the few Ichigo had, because she liked how the entire thing was white.

Hichigo turned in a way so Rukia couldn't see his face and barked to a shadow, "Come out! Where I know she can see you!"

She heard rustling, and Byakuya, looking malnourished and drained, stepped out of the shadows shakily, his hands bound in rope. His usually impeccable clothing was ragged. He looked like he'd been stuck in the woods as long as she had, only, without an orange-haired supposedly good demon to take care of him. It was then the random thought occurred to her that though she didn't remember bathing, and she definitely hadn't changed, she was still clean-ish. Just what did that idiot do to keep her so? Or maybe demons never get dirty?

"Rukia! Please come out! Just give the man what he wants... What is it that he wants?" Byakuya said weakly. His voice was hoarse, like he hadn't had water in a while. That put her thought train back on track.

Despite her odd relationship and feelings toward Byakuya, she almost leaped out of the tree and slit Hichigo's throat right there. But Ichigo's warning rang in her head.

_"He'll make you see things Rukia. He'll try and trick you as best he can. Don't fall for smoke and mirrors."_

"Please, Rukia!" Byakuya wailed.'

So it was a trick. She hadn't learned much about her older brother in the time she'd spent with him, but she had learned one thing. _He did not beg._

Rukia continued to wait, until Hichigo grew tired and Fake Byakuya shuffled off into the darkness. She tried desperately to remember the plan, to cling to it.

_"Wait in the trees," Ichigo had said. "I'll distract him, and while his attention is focused on me, you jump down and kill him."_

It should have been simple, but what was taking him so long?

Hichigo continued to conjure images of people Rukia knew: Momo, Hisana, even Renji, a childhood friend of hers from Rukongai (he had been quite hard to say goodbye to), every single one of them begging her to come down. And she almost snapped too, when that warped voice met her ears again.

"Oh I know why you're taking so long. You're waiting for my brother, aren't you?"

From the same darkness emerged a perfect image of Ichigo. Bound, but oddly silent. He didn't beg for her to come down. Still, Rukia wasn't worried.

"_If I get captured," he'd said, "I'll look where you are and tap my leg three times."_

Fake Ichigo hadn't tapped his leg. He just stood there. And finally, Hichigo grew impatient, and began circling the clearing Rukia was perched above, muttering angrily. And when his back was turned, Fake Ichigo looked right up at her and tapped his leg.

Once, she thought. Could be a coincidence.

Twice, maybe his leg itches?

Three times, oh no. We're done for.

**I'm sorry for taking forever to update.**


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